Brand name ownership after assignment supports small scale exemption despite later trade mark registration

Ownership of a brand name by assignment was treated as decisive for eligibility to small scale exemption under Notification No. 1/93-C.E., so the exemption could not be denied merely because trade mark registration was completed later. Where the assessee had obtained proprietary rights in the brand and used it for clearances, that assignment was sufficient to establish entitlement to the notification benefit. The analysis thus links exemption availability to brand ownership and proprietary use, rather than to the timing of formal registration.

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Issues: Whether an assessee, after assignment of the brand name, is entitled to the small scale exemption under Notification No. 1/93-C.E. from the date of such assignment.

Analysis: The assessee had acquired the brand name by assignment and claimed the exemption in respect of clearances made under that brand from the effective date of assignment. The Tribunal followed its earlier view that the decisive factor for the bar under the notification is ownership of the brand name, and where the brand name belongs to the assessee, the exemption cannot be denied merely because registration with the trade mark registry was completed later. The existence of assignment and proprietary use was treated as sufficient to establish entitlement to the exemption.

Conclusion: The assessee was entitled to the benefit of Notification No. 1/93-C.E. for clearances made under the brand name 'COSMOS' with effect from 1-8-1993.

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